A roof rack assembly and a crossbar assembly are commonly mounted on the roof panel of SUV's (sport-utility vehicles) in order to carry luggage, bicycles, skis and other large sporting gear that is too long or too big for stowage within the vehicle.
However, conventional crossbar assemblies and roof rack assemblies have a number of drawbacks. For example, the crossbar may be accidentally attached to the side rails in the wrong direction. In other words, if a customer inadvertently mounts the crossbar assembly to the side rails in the reverses direction, the crossbar may generate wind noise while driving because the front surface and the rear surface of the crossbar are designed differently with different aerodynamic features.